Respiratory device



2 Sheets-Sheet 1 E. E. GIBBENS ETAL RESPIRATORY DEVICE INVENTORS EDMOND E. GIBBENS Agem GUILFORD W. LOUTHAN nlv June 5, 1962 Filed May 21, 195e United States Patent-O f 3,037,502 RESPIRATORY DEVICE Edmond E. Gibbens, Hollywood, and Guilford W.

Louthan, Van Nuys, Calif., assignors to Lockheed Aircraft Corporation, Burbank, Calif.

Filed May 21, 1956, Ser. No. 586,160 1 Claim. (Cl. 128--144) This invention relates -to closed system respiratory devices and more particularly to such a device having means for maintaining a constant pressure ratio between external body pressure and internal breathing pressure regardless of affected external pressure.

To train and indoctrinate personnel for high altitude flight operations, it has been found desirable to provide practice respiratory equipment so that personnel may familiarize themselves with the operation and procedures involved in pressure breathing. It is particularly helpful for personnel, such as pilots, to practice pressure breathing while dressed in their partial pressure suits. Conventional respiratory devices for this purpose are generally referred to as oxygen consoles and comprise a source of oxygen supplied to the partial pressure suit worn by the pilot for external body pressure and supplied tothe pilot for breathing. It is essential that the pressure applied to the suit be approximately live (5) times the internal or breathing pressure of the pilot. Generally, the suit pressure is controlled by means of a manually operated regulator valve which may be `opened and closed to obtain proper external pressure commensurate to the breathing pressure. External and internal pressure gages are employed to indicate applied pressures. However, difficulties have been encountered when employing apparatus of this conventional type because of the safety hazard present in the event of valve failure or failure of any part of the suit pressure system which would suddenly reduce the suit pressure without proportionally reducing the breathing pressure. A reduction of external pressure may be caused by the presence of a leak or hole in the suit or perhaps the pilot may mistakenly actuate the regulator valve which might upset the desired ve-to-one ratio. The result of such a loss or reduction in the ratio between external and internal pressures causes extreme discomfort to the pilot in some cases and it may possibly be fatal in other cases.

These dificulties are overcome in accordance with the present invention in which a novel pressure ratio means is provided which senses the external pressure Vand regulates the breathing pressure in accordance therewith.l This is accomplished by sensing the oxygen pressure supplied to the partial pressure suit and applying -this pressure to activate a diaphragm means in a regulator valve. The diaphragm means is constructed and arranged so that any movement thereof will be transferred by means of a mechanical linkage to limit the pressure of oxygen used for breathing. Therefore, any change in suit or external pressure will be reliected by Ia commensurate change of breathing pressure.

It is an object `of the present invention to provide means for maintaining a constant pressure ratio between external pressure applied to the body and the internal breathing pressure. It has been found desirable to maintain the pressures in accordance with an approximate five-to-one 4 ratio respectively.

PatentedJ-une V5, 1962 It is another `object of the present invention to provide an oxygen console of the type herein described which will reduce internal breathing pressure in accordance with a reduction in external body pressure.

It is still another object of the present invention to provide a novel means for supplying oxygen at a reduced pressure and maintain pressure in the partial pressure suit.

It is another object of the present invention to provide a novel means for sensing applied external body pressure and regulating internal body pressure in accordance with the sensed external body pressure.

It is another object of the present invention to provide a regulator operable by the applied external pressure for regulating internal breathing pressure.

It is still another object of the present invention to provide a novel means for adequate respiratory protection included in oxygen consoles of the type herein described.

These and other objects will be more clearly understood and described with reference to the accompanying drawings in which:

FIGURE l is a schematic drawing in accordance with the present invention illustrating the oxygen distribution system and means for regulating the distribution thereof; and

FIGURE 2 is a sectional View of the valve regulator shown in FIGURE l for sensing the external body pressure and for controlling the breathing pressure.

Referring to FIGURE 1, an oxygen pressure breathing system is shown in accordance with the present invention which comprises an external pressure oxygen system flowing in the direction of arrow 5 and an internal or breathing pressure system flowing in direction of arrow 6. Oxygen pressure applied to lthe external and internal systems is provide by means of an oxygen pressure source 7 attached to an inlet tube 12. It has been found desirable to regulate the oxygen source to provide a constant inlet pressure of about i p.s.i. Pressure is supplied to the two systems from the common oxygen source by means of a tube 14 connected with inlet tube 12.

Pressure applied to the external body of :a person is supplied by the external pressure system to a pressure suit 9 worn by the person, referred to as a partial pressure suit, attached to an outlet tube 15. The partial pressure suit employed may be of the conventional type having pressure ducts 10, commonly referred to as capstans, extending along lthe sleeves, legs and body 0f the suit into which oxygen pressure is introduced from tube 15. Increased pressure in the ducts exerts pressure against the external body of the person wearing the suit. Breathing pressure is applied to the lungs of the person by means of a llexible breathing hose llcoupled to a tube 17. A conventional breathing mask 11 is connected to hose 16 and is usually constructed to fit snugly about the face of the wearer.

Pressure indicators 18' and 20 are coupled to tubes 15 and 17, respectively, so that the values of external and breathing pressures may be known. Optimum breathing efficiency is achieved when the applied suit pressure is approximately five times the applied breathing pressure. Preferably, the breathing pressure should be maintained yat Iapproximately 2 p.s.i. and the suit pressure at 10 p.s.i. For the purpose of clarification, the external pressure system will be initially described. Coupled to one end of tube 14 is a valve 21 which has a flexible diaphragm 35. Valve 21 is employed to control the amount of oxygen pressure supplied to the external pressure system via tube 15. A fitting 22 attached to tube 14 has a passage 23 which tapers in one end of the fitting to provide an orifice 24. The valve 21 is attached to fitting 22 so that orifice 24 opens into a valve passage `25 extending through a valve base 26 to join a passage 27 extending through a fitting 28. Fitting 28 is employed to connect the valve 21 to outlet tube 15.

Oxygen flow from tube 14 through passages 23, 25 and 27 is under the control of a plug 30 longitudinally movable within a thickened portion 31 of the valve base. The plug is provided with a pin 32 which is engaged by a pivotally mounted bell crank 33. This construction and arrangement allows the pivotal movement of the bell crank to be translated into longitudinal movement of the plug. When the plug has been moved to close orifice 24, the flow of oxygen through the passage 23 is stopped. The end of the bell crank, opposite the end engaged with the pin, is connected to a stem 34 which is supported by exible diaphragm 35. Diaphragm 35 is supported between a valve body 36 and the valve base 26 in such a manner that the diaphragm may move within limits set by the rigidity of the supported diaphragm. rI'he diaphragm is moved by means of rotating a handle 37 supported by a collar 38 attached to the valve body against the spring pressure of a spring 40. A stop 39 is employed so that its engagement with collar 38 will prohibit further rotation of handle 37 at a point where oxygen pressure through orifice 24 is approximately 10 p.s.i.

A capstan relief valve 41 is employed in the external pressure system to clear out or release pressure in the external pressure system. ln this manner, pressure may be released from the partial pressure suit and from the external pressure system when the respiratory device is not in operation or its use has been discontinued. Valve 41 is attached to tube by means of a tube 42 attached to a base 43 of the valve 41. A plug 44 is constructed and arranged to intercept a passage 45 through the valve base and is actuated by manual rotation of a handle 46 whose stem 47 acts against a leaf spring 48. Spring 48 is employed to provide a resistive action against stem 47 as handle 46 is rotated.

A regulator 50 is employed to regulate the supply of oxygen available for breathing and is shown more clearly in FIGURE 2. In general, the regulator comprises a housing consisting of a top portion 51, a pair of threadably engaged intermediate bodies 52 and 53 and a base 54, all of which enclose mechanism for breathing pressure regulation. Base 54 is coupled to tube 14 by means of a fitting 55. Top portion 51 and the intermediate body 52 are attached to one another by a suitable bolting arrangement 56. Supported by this arrangement between the top portion 51 and intermediate body 52 and forming a top chamber 57 enclosed by the top portion, is an annular diaphragm 58 which holds in turn, an annular collar 59, a cup 60 and a coil spring 61. The diaphragm may be composed of any suitable flexible material such as plastic, rubber or plastic impregnated fiber cloth, The iiexible diaphragm is partially maintained in a rigid condition by means of an annular disk 62 supporting the central section of the diaphragm. Supporting the diaphragm in this manner provides an annular diaphragm convolution 63 to be maintained between the periphery of annular disk 62 and the interior walls of the housing.

Cup 60 is provided with a tip 64 insertable into the annular collar 59 and an integral ring 65 which forms a seat to receive one end of spring 61. Expansion of spring 61 in combination with tip 64 maintains the cup 60 in a fixed position. A washer 66 and an upper retainer 67 provide a suitable seat for the end of spring 61 opposite the end seated in cup 60. Rubber washer 66 is urged against top portion 51 by the expansive action of l spring 61 to close ports 66a and 66b. During manual operation of the oxygen console, air present in chamber 57 will be expelled through the ports so that no air pressure may actuate diaphragm 62.

Extending through the top portion 51 and engageable with retainer 67 is a rotatable handle 68 threadably engaged with the top portion of the housing. The handle is firmly attached to retainer 67 by means of a nut and screw arrangement 69. Clockwise rotation of the handle acts against the expansive force of spring 61 and causes the diaphragm 58 to be urged in a direction away from the handle. A stop 29 associated with handle 68 limits its rotation when engaged with the top portion so that approximately 2 p.s.i. of oxygen pressure is supplied to the internal breathing system.

Chamber 57 may be exposed to external pressure by means of a tube 70 connected in parallel to tube 15. Attachment between top portion 51 and tube 70 is achieved by employment of a fitting 71. Fluctuations of pressure in chamber 57 are reflected by commensurate movement of the flexible diaphragm 58 during automatic operation of the oxygen console when washer 66 blocks its associated ports 66a and 66h.

Attached to disk 62 by means of an attachment piece 72 is a shaft 73 which extends through the center of the regulator remaining equidistant from the interior walls of the pair of intermediate bodies 52 and 53. A second annular diaphragm 75 is provided between intermediate body 53 and base 54 and is held in position by means of a bolt arrangement 76 by which intermediate body 53 is attached to the base 54. Annular diaphragm 75 is similar in composition to diaphragm 58. The central portion of diaphragm 75 is maintained rigid by means of an annular plate 77 having a rounded periphery 78. Movement of the diaphragm 58 is transferred by means of shaft 73 to diaphragm 75. Shaft 73 is provided with a small attachment piece 79 which is aixed to plate 77 and extends through the center of plate 77 and diaphragm 75. Thus it can be seen that pressure variations occurring in chamber 57 against diaphragm 58 or rotation of the handle will be reflected by commensurate movement of diaphragm 75 because of the rigidly interconnecting shaft. A hole and plug arrangement 80 is provided for access into a chamber 81 between the two diaphragms for maintenance and repair purposes.

Fitting 55 is constructed in a similar manner to fitting 22 and has an orifice 82 through which oxygen is supplied from tube 14. Oxygen flowing through orifice 82 is under the control of a plug 83 longitudinally positioned within a recess 84 of the base 54. A resilient rubber pad 85 is employed to cushion the action of the plug and to effect efficient sealing. One end of the plug is provided with a pin 86 engageable with a notch 87 of a bell crank 89 pivotally mounted interiorly of base 54 within a chamber 90. The end of the bell crank opposite the end having notch 87 is pivotally attached to a connector 88 attached to shaft 73 and diaphragm 75. Displacement of the diaphragm is transferred to vertical movement of the connector which pivotally rotates the bell crank.

The path of oxygen flow for breathing extends from tube 14 through orifice 82 and chamber 90 to tube 17 via a fitting 91. Connected in parallel with tube 17 is a tube 92 which leads to a -breathing pressure relief valve 93. Valve 93 encloses a plug 94 supported by a coil spring 95 compressiblc against top plate 96. A small outlet 97 is provided in the plate so that when excessive pressure urges plug 94 to compress spring 95, oxygen may escape and thereby reduce the breathing pressure to normal. It has been found desirable to maintain the breathing pressure at approximately 2 p.s.i. Pressure over this amount will automatically actuate valve 93 and restore the lbreathing pressure to 2 p.s.i.

Hose 16 is connected to tube 17 by means of a manually operated dump valve 98 having an exhaust outlet 99. Valve 98 is employed as an emergency means for speedily expelling or relieving pressure from the breathing pressure system. A handle (not shown) is attached to a rotor 100 so that when the handle is activated, breathing pressure is diverted from hose 16 to outlet 97.

A valve 101 connected to tube 70 is provided so that automatic regulation of breathing pressure may be achieved when desired. Inasmuch as breathing pressure may be regulated by means of rotation of handle 68 on regulator 50, manual control is available and it is not necessary to vary the pressure in chamber 57 to actuate diaphragm 58. However, for automatic operation of regulator 50, it is required that external pressure be diverted into chamber 57 so that the external pressure or any variations thereof will actuate diaphragm 58. Valve 101 may be opened or closed to effect the -sensing of external pressure available in tube 15. Valve 101 is identical to the construction of the valve 41 and represents a means for applying external pressure to chamber 57 or preventing the application thereof.

In actual operation, a pilot connects his partial pressure suit 9 to outlet tube 15 and places the oxygen mask 11 connected to hose 16 over his face. Valve 21 is opened by clockwise rotation of handle 37 which pivots bell crank 33 and translates the pivotal movement into longitudinal movement of plug 30. Oxygen pressure now passes through orifice 24 from the oxygen supply via tubes 12 and 14 respectively. Oxygen pressure flows through passage 25 and passage 27 to tube 15 and thereby to the inflation ducts of the suit. Pressure gage Z0 indicates to the pilot the amount of applied oxygen pressure to his suit.v When the pressure indicator reveals an external capstan pressure of '10 p.s.i. the handle 37 of valve 21 has been adjusted to its maximum clockwise position. Since valve 41 is in its closed condition, an external pressure of l0 p.s.i. is present in tube 42. During the initiation of operation valve 101 also should Ibe closed so that external pressure is not applied to chamber 57 of regulator 50.

In order to apply breathing pressure to the pilot, handle `68 of regulator 50 is rotated in a clockwise direction which acts against spring 61 to actuate diaphragm 58. The movement of diaphragm 58 is followed by movement of diaphragm 75 via shaft 73. Clockwise rotation of handle 68 activates diaphragm 58 downward and thereby diaphragm 7S moves downward in relation to the regulator and by means of connector 88, valve crank 89 is pivoted. Pivotal movement of bell crank 8.9 is similar to the pivoting movement of bell crank 33 of valve 21 in that its motion is translated into longitudinal motion of plug 83 within recess 84. Longitudinal movement of plug 83 in response to downward movement of diaphragm 75 opens orifice 82 so that oxygen supplied from tube 12 and 14 may be applied through chamber 90 of regulator 50 to tube 17. The breathing oxygen is passed from tube 17 through valve 98 to breathing hose 16 and thereby to the oxygen mask of the pilot. Breathing pressure is indicated by means of indicator 18 attached to tube 17 and thereby reveals to the pilot the amount of breathing pressure being applied. If internal breathing pressure indicated on indicator 18 seems to be excessive, handle 68 of regulator 50 may be rotated counter-clockwise which actuates plug 83 to restrict oxygen pressure being provided through orifice 82.

Should the pressure in tube 17 exceed the 2 p.s.i. pressure level after the setting of regulator 50, excess pressure will be bled from the internal bleeding system by means of relief valve 93. Excessive internal breathing pressure will force plug 94 against the tension of spring 95 and thereby be released through outlet 97. Upon the reduction of internal breathing pressure to 2 p.s.i. the tension of spring 95 will urge plug 94 to close tube 92.

Another feature incorporated into the breathing system for safety purposes is dump valve 98. Should relief valve 93 become inoperative or for other reasons, the pilot may yspeedily empty the internal breathing system of oxygen by activating rotor 100 to pass the oxygen in the system out through outlet 99. This is manually accomplished by rotating a handle (not shown) connected to the rotor. v c

For automatic operation ofV regulator 50 in order to maintain a constant five-to-one ratio between pressure in tube 15 and pressure in tube 17, valve 101 is open to apply external breathing pressure to chamber 57 by means of tube 70. Ports 66a and 66h are closed by washer 66. Pressure present in chamber 57 acts against the upper surface of diaphragm 58. Actuating plug 83 closes or at least restricts further supply and passage of oxygen through orifice 82.

This pressure acting against diaphragm 58 actuates plug 83, as previously described, by means of displacing diaphragm 75 and connector 88 so that orice 82 opens to increase the supply of oxygen pressure.

Should the external pressure present in chamber 57 subside or be reduced due to any cause, diaphragm 58 would be displaced upwardly due to the presence of oxygen pressure in chamber acting against the underside of diaphragm 75. Displacement of the diaphragm once again positions plug 83 in recess 84 to close or at least restrict the flow of oxygen flowing through orifice 82.

The size of chambers 57, 81 and 90 of the regulator 50 in combination with the resiliency of diaphragms 58 and 75 determine the equalization point at which plug 83 efficiently controls oxygen flowing through orifice 82. -At the point of equalization, the pressures in chambers 57 and 90 balance the diaphragms 58 and 75 so that the pressure ratio between external and internal breathing pressure remains a 4constant live-to-one respectively.

Having described only typical forms of the invention we do not Wish to be limited to the specic details herein set forth, but wish to reserve to ourselves any variations or modifications that may appear to those skilled in the art and fall within the scope of the following claims.

We claim:

In a high altitude respiratory device including a breathing mask and a pressure suit and providing for prevention of disproportionate pressure between the mask and the suit due to suit blow-out and including an oxygen source, a breathing mask pressure system and a body suit pressure system both connected to said oxygen source, the combination comprising, a pressure regulator in said mask system between said oxygen source and a breathing mask, a first and a second moveable surface means coaxially disposed in said regulator and spaced apart, a suit pressure chamber defined by the outer surface of said first surface means and the interior of said regulator, a mask pressure chamber defined by the outer surface of said second moveable surface means and the interior of said regulator, said suit pressure system connecting to said suit pressure chamber, a control means disposed in said mask pressure chamber for controlling pressure between said source and a mask, said control meansy positively connected to said second surface means whereby movement of said control means is directly proportional to the movement of said second surface means bidirectionally over the full range of movement described by said second surface means, said mask pressure chamber directly connected with the mask whereby said second moveable surface means acts as a demand control surface for said control means, an axial shaft integrally connected between said first and said second moveable surface means, a resilient spring means within said regulator acting -against the force by said moveable surface means for urging said control means into open position, a manual adjustment means for increasing the force exerted by said resilient spring means, said control means controllable yalternatively by suit pressure acting on the outer surface of said lirst surface means to vary the mask system pressure; by said mask pressure acting on the outer surface of said second moveable surface means to vary mask systern pressure with respect to the users inhalation demand; and by adjustment of said manual means so as to open said control means regardless of suit system pressure, whereby in the event of a suit blow-out at high altitude both dynamically operating moveable surface means will instantaneously and positively close said mask pressure control means to prevent oxygen flow into the mask and thereafter providing for manual adjustment of said resilient spring means to open said control means to permit a limited oxygen ow to the mask.

References Cited in he file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS Akerman July 16, 1946 Seeler Mar. 8, 1955 Keckler et al. May 13, 1958 Pauly Oct. 28, 1958 Meidenbauer Jan. 6, 1959 

